This invention relates to an apparatus for measurement and solid fluid filtering, particularly an apparatus for measurement during exploration and production of subsurface resources that simultaneously reduces solids from being produced while allowing fluids to be produced into a production conduit.
Various properties are typically monitored in wells, such as flow, pressure, vibration, sound, strain, light frequency and changes thereof, electrical resistance and conductance, displacement, and temperature. Measurement devices are typically either run down on wireline tools, or in lines attached externally to the drill or production piping. Wireline tool measurement techniques allow for measurements over short periods of time, since wireline tools are typically not left in a well. Additional conduits disposed in the well outside of the production conduit reduce the overall size of the drilling or production conduits which fluids can be produced through, as space must be made to accommodate the additional instrumentation line in the wellbore.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,202,939 teaches the art of using optic fiber sensors for pressure, temperature, and strain, with the Fabry-Perot interferometer and cross-correlation methods using a Fizeau interferometer. The Fabry-Perot optic sensing crevice could be used for measuring physical parameters within wellbore if the optics could be successfully carried downhole.
There is a need for an apparatus to be disposed permanently in the wellbore which will allow full-time measurement while minimizing an reduction to flow area in the production conduit. In a first embodiment there is provided an apparatus comprising:
a first tubular having an inside surface and outside surface defining an outside diameter;
a second tubular concentric with and said first tubular, said second tubular having an inside surface defining an inside diameter greater than the outside diameter of said first tubular, an outside surface, and a longitudinal axis;
a plurality of spacers between said first and second tubulars, each said spacer having a longitudinal axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of said second tubular, wherein at least one said spacer is hollow; and
at least one means for sensing data and/or at least one means for collecting, data and/or at least one means for transmitting data carried within said at least one hollow spacer.
In a second embodiment there is provided an apparatus for measurement comprising:
a cylindrical shaped membrane having a longitudinal axis, said membrane comprising at least one wire wound helically around a plane parallel to said longitudinal axis, thereby forming a cylindrical shaped membrane having an inside surface defining an inside diameter and an outside surface defining an outside diameter, wherein at least one said wire is hollow; and
at least one means for sensing data and/or at least one means for collecting data and/or at least one means for transmitting data carried within said at least one hollow wire.
In another embodiment, there is provided a process for taking measurements in a well, said process comprising:
providing a wellbore;
running means for sensing data and means for collecting data and means for transmitting data within an apparatus placed in the wellbore, said apparatus comprising a first tubular having an inside surface and outside surface defining an outside diameter, a second tubular concentric with and said first tubular, said second tubular having an inside surface defining an inside diameter greater than the outside diameter of said first tubular, an outside surface, and a longitudinal axis, and a plurality of spacers between said first and second tubulars, each said spacer having a longitudinal axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of said second tubular, wherein at least one said spacer is hollow, wherein said one means for sensing data and means for collecting data and means for transmitting data are carried within said at least one hollow spacer.
sensing and collecting data depicting certain well conditions; and
transmitting said data through said means for transmitting data.